Were ‘Yellowstone’ Streaming Rights to Blame for ‘Marshals’ Killing Off Monica?

Spencer Hudnut, the creator of CBS‘s Yellowstone spinoff, said that Monica Dutton (Kelsey Asbille) was killed off before the events of the Marshals series premiere to give Kayce Dutton’s (Luke Grimes) next chapter a dramatic start. But a new report claims that legal issues regarding Yellowstone and Marshals streaming rights might have been the real reason propelling the decision to write off the character.

Asbille played Monica, Kayce’s wife and Tate’s (Brecken Merrill) mother, in every season of Yellowstone. She was alive and well and had found a happy ending with her family in the Yellowstone series finale, which came out in December 2024. Asbille was absent from Marshals casting announcements and trailers, leading to speculation that she was being killed off, that ended up being correct. Episode 1 revealed that Monica died of cancer between the events of the Yellowstone series finale and Marshals series premiere.

Yellowstone aired exclusively on Paramount Network for five seasons. According to Puck, Paramount reportedly wanted to make sure that Marshals could stream on Paramount+ instead of Peacock, which has the exclusive streaming rights to Taylor Sheridan‘s Yellowstone. NBCUniversal’s streaming deal is said to include any continuations of Yellowstone. CBS reportedly killed off Monica to help make Marshals a clear spinoff, not a sequel series.

The procedural format of the Sunday night drama also helps on that front. That could also explain why the reference to Yellowstone was removed from the show’s title. (Marshals‘ original title was Y: Marshals. The “Y” branding still appears in the show’s branding.) Sheridan recently signed an overall deal with NBCUniversal that will begin in 2029.

The next Yellowstone spinoff, Dutton Ranch, stars Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser reprising their roles as Beth and Rip, the fan-favorite couple from the flagship series. Dutton Ranch will air on Paramount Network and stream on Paramount+ when it premieres in May. The network and streaming home were announced on March 23. The first trailer for the series came out that day as well.

Marshals airs on Sundays at 8/7c on CBS, with episodes available to stream the next day on Paramount+. It’s already been renewed for a second season.

Dutton Ranch premieres with two episodes on Friday, May 15, at 8/7c on Paramount Network. It will also come out on May 15 on Paramount+. After the two-episode series premiere, one episode will come out weekly on the linear channel and streaming service.

Marshals, Sundays, 8/7c, CBS

Dutton Ranch, Series Premiere Friday, May 15, 8/7c, Paramount Network, Streaming on Paramount+

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